Need another word that means the same as “bleak”? Find 44 synonyms and 30 related words for “bleak” in this overview.
The synonyms of “Bleak” are: bare, barren, desolate, stark, black, dim, cutting, raw, exposed, arid, denuded, lunar, open, empty, windswept, cold, keen, harsh, wintry, unpromising, unfavourable, unpropitious, inauspicious, adverse, disadvantageous, uninviting, discouraging, disheartening, depressing, cheerless, joyless, gloomy, sombre, dreary, dismal, wretched, miserable, dark, grim, drab, portentous, foreboding, hopeless, ominous
According to the Oxford Dictionary of English, “bleak” as an adjective can have the following definitions:
adverse | In an opposing direction. Adverse weather conditions. |
arid | (of land or a climate) having little or no rain; too dry or barren to support vegetation. The arid plains north of Cape Town. |
bare | Just barely adequate or within a lower limit. An ordeal that would lay bare a troubled family background. |
barren | (of a tree or plant) not producing fruit or seed. The barren fig tree. |
black | Of a ski run of the highest level of difficulty as indicated by black markers positioned along it. A black moonless night. |
cheerless | Causing sad feelings of gloom and inadequacy. Something cheerless about the room. |
cold | Having a low or inadequate temperature or feeling a sensation of coldness or having been made cold by e g ice or refrigeration. A cold and unaffectionate person. |
cutting | Capable of cutting something. The cutting blades of the hedge trimmer. |
dark | Having a dark hue. A dark gloomy day. |
denuded | Without the natural or usual covering. |
depressing | Causing or resulting in a feeling of miserable dejection. That thought is too depressing for words. |
desolate | (of a place) uninhabited and giving an impression of bleak emptiness. A desolate Pennine moor. |
dim | Made dim or less bright. The dimmed houselights brought a hush of anticipation. |
disadvantageous | Involving or creating circumstances detrimental to success or effectiveness. The new employment scheme is disadvantageous to women. |
discouraging | Expressing disapproval in order to dissuade. Where never is heard a discouraging word. |
disheartening | Destructive of morale and self-reliance. Her death is particularly disheartening because it was preventable. |
dismal | Causing a mood of gloom or depression. The first dismal dispiriting days of November. |
drab | Lacking in liveliness or charm or surprise. Her drab personality. |
dreary | Lacking in liveliness or charm or surprise. The dreary round of working eating and trying to sleep. |
empty | Devoid of significance or force. Their promises were empty words. |
exposed | Not sheltered or protected from the weather. Some areas of exposed coastline could see gusts of wind of more than 80 mph. |
foreboding | Implying that something bad is going to happen. When the Doctor spoke his voice was dark and foreboding. |
gloomy | Dark or poorly lit, especially so as to appear depressing or frightening. A gloomy silence. |
grim | Very serious or gloomy. A grim goalless draw in appalling weather. |
harsh | Unpleasantly rough or jarring to the senses. The harsh facts of court delays. |
hopeless | Without hope because there seems to be no possibility of comfort or success. The situation is hopeless. |
inauspicious | Unlucky. Following this inauspicious start the British outnumbered withdrew. |
joyless | Not giving or feeling any pleasure or satisfaction; grim or dismal. A joyless occasion. |
keen | Interested in or attracted by (someone or something. Keen winds. |
lunar | Of, determined by, or resembling the moon. A lunar eclipse. |
miserable | (of a person) wretchedly unhappy or uncomfortable. Almost depleted his miserable store of dried beans. |
ominous | Giving the worrying impression that something bad is going to happen; threateningly inauspicious. There were ominous dark clouds gathering overhead. |
open | Open and observable not secret or hidden. The plans allow increasing numbers of new houses in open countryside. |
portentous | Puffed up with vanity. This portentous year in Canadian history. |
raw | (of language) coarse or crude, typically in relation to sexual matters. You may kill someone someday with your raw power. |
sombre | Lacking brightness or color; dull. The night skies were sombre and starless. |
stark | Providing no shelter or sustenance. Stark poverty. |
unfavourable | Involving or creating circumstances detrimental to success or effectiveness. Single mothers are often the target of unfavourable press attention. |
uninviting | (especially of a place or prospect) not attractive. The house was dark and uninviting. |
unpromising | Not giving hope of future success or good results. The boy s natural intellect had survived in unpromising circumstances. |
unpropitious | (of a circumstance) not giving or indicating a good chance of success; unfavourable. His reports were submitted at a financially unpropitious time. |
windswept | Untidy in appearance after being exposed to the wind. Windswept headlands. |
wintry | Characteristic of or occurring in winter. Brown wintry grasses. |
wretched | Of very poor quality or condition. She disliked the wretched man intensely. |
barren | A barren tract or tracts of land. The room was barren of furniture. |
crestfallen | Sad and disappointed. He came back empty handed and crestfallen. |
dejected | Affected or marked by low spirits. He stood in the street looking dejected. |
depressed | Lower than previously. The market is depressed. |
despair | A state in which all hope is lost or absent. In despair I hit the bottle. |
despairing | Showing the loss of all hope. He gave a despairing little shrug. |
desperate | Desperately determined. Felt a desperate urge to confess. |
despondent | Without or almost without hope. Despondent about his failure. |
dingy | Discolored by impurities; not bright and clear is often used in combination. A dingy room. |
disappointed | Disappointingly unsuccessful. Thousands of disappointed customers were kept waiting. |
disconsolate | Very unhappy and unable to be comforted. She left Fritz looking disconsolate. |
discouraged | Lacking in resolution. Felt discouraged by the magnitude of the problem. |
dismal | Causing dejection. The dismal weather made the late afternoon seem like evening. |
dispirited | Having lost enthusiasm and hope; disheartened. A dispirited and divided Party. |
drab | Clothes especially trousers made of drab. A young man dressed in drabs. |
dreary | Lacking in liveliness or charm or surprise. A series of dreary dinner parties. |
forbidden | Not allowed; banned. A list of forbidden books. |
gloomy | Causing dejection. A dark gloomy day. |
hangdog | Showing a sense of guilt- Eric Linklater. The hangdog and shamefaced air of the retreating enemy. |
heartsick | Full of sorrow. Weary and heartsick she forced herself to search throughout the remains of the village. |
helpless | Unable to defend oneself or to act without help. Lying ill and helpless. |
hopeless | Beyond hope of management or reform. She handed me a hopeless jumble of papers. |
inhospitable | (of an environment) harsh and difficult to live in. They are extremely inhospitable these days. |
melancholy | Having a feeling of melancholy sad and pensive. She felt a little melancholy. |
pessimistic | Expecting the worst possible outcome. He was pessimistic about the prospects. |
prohibit | (of a fact or situation) make (something) impossible; prevent. All ivory trafficking between nations is prohibited. |
relentlessly | In an unceasingly intense or harsh way. Joseph worked relentlessly. |
sad | Of things that make you feel sad Christina Rossetti. He told her the sad story of his life. |
stark | Severe or bare in appearance or outline. His position is in stark contrast to that of Curran. |
unmitigated | Not diminished or moderated in intensity or severity; sometimes used as an intensifier. The tour had been an unmitigated disaster. |
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